1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a music session support method, a musical instrument for music sessions, and a music session support program.
2. Description of the Related Art
Attempts have been made to implement a music session by a set of players who are remote to one another by connecting together a plurality of computers, to which musical instruments are connected, via a network, and exchanging music data between these computers. Techniques have even been proposed for supporting the implementation of this type of music session.
For example, a system has been proposed which implements mutual collaboration upon composition of music data by a plurality of users who are remote from one another (for example, refer to Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2001-195064). This system is comprised of client apparatuses of the users and a server apparatus which manages and controls the composition work performed by the various users in collaboration. This server apparatus is provided with a chat function, so that, when inputting or editing of music composition data is performed upon any one of the client apparatuses, the details thereof are distributed directly to the other client apparatuses via the server apparatus.
However, when players who are remote from one another participate in a music session via a server apparatus in this manner, each of the players cannot be clearly aware of whether the other players who are his partners in the session are currently in the state of immediately participating in the session, or whether they are not currently in the state of being able to participate in the session although they are connected to the server apparatus.